A mulch installation service near Arlington, VA gets judged on three things a homeowner can see from the driveway: how deep the material sits, how clean the bed line reads, and how long the color holds before it fades. 

Most of that is decided before the first wheelbarrow arrives, while the crew is cutting edges and clearing last season’s debris. Homeowners comparing proposals this fall tend to open with price per yard. The more useful question is what happens to the beds before any mulch goes down.